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Los Angeles public libraries may no longer face Monday closures as measures to extend the city’s library hours will be on voting ballots as soon as March 2011. Senior Librarian for the Westchester-Loyola Village Public Library Ken Blum spoke on the news Saturday as he expressed excitement about upcoming voting measures that could reverse the two-day-a-week closures implemented last June.

The Westchester-Loyola Village library was one of the 73 libraries in Los Angeles to be affected by recent changes to the city budget. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa called for city-wide library closures on Sundays and Mondays to lessen the work load on remaining staff members who were not laid off due to previous cuts.

Kathy Lindemann, the young adult librarian at Westchester-Loyola Village, said along with her position there were formerly two other librarians for children and adults. Lindemann heads the Teen Advisory Group for the Westchester branch – a monthly educational service for students from sixth to 12^th grade – along with overseeing other tasks around the branch.

One of the primary sources of funding outside of the city budget comes from the Friends of the Library program, a dedicated group of private supporters who accompany various branches in Los Angeles.

“[Friends of the Library] helps a lot as far as fundraising for Westchester and the different LA branches,” said Lindemann. “They help along with the book sales we have throughout the year and especially the upcoming annual sale before Christmas which is really popular.”

While not every branch has a Friends of the Library program, those that do are exclusively catered by their Friends supporters. For more information on the Friends of the Library group at Westchester Loyola Village, visit http://www.westchesterloyolafriends.org/.

Many of the library patrons at Westchester are parents of children who attend one of the schools in the local community, including Loyola Village Elementary and Westchester High School. Higher institutions in the area include Loyola-Marymount University and Otis College of Art and Design, both within two miles of the branch.

The Westchester community is populated at about 39,000 people according to Census data from 2000. About 61 percent of the community is White, while about 16 percent is Black and nine percent is Asian. In 1999, the median household income for the area was $56,500 with a median housing value for homeowners at about $347,000. More information can be found about Westchester and the 90045 zip code area at the U.S. Census page here.

As fundraising opportunities with book sales and private supporters are major community involvement factors, Lindemann stated volunteer work also helps with getting locals involved and maintaining a sense of pride about the library. On average, Westchester-Loyola Village staffs anywhere from one to six teen volunteers a month. Most volunteers are occupied with shelving tasks and may soon be granted opportunities to read to younger children during reading events.

During previous years, the city of Los Angeles published multi-year strategic plan outlining goals of regional and city-wide library facilities. Blum noted that plans are constantly changing and while board members look for new ways to make improvements, the current outline put in place by the Board of Library Commissions is a focus on students, pre-school aged children and technology.

The head of the Board is City Librarian Martiń Gomez, who along with Mayor Villaraigosa, announced in 2009 the Federal Recovery Act Grant allotting $5.5 million to the city’s libraries. According to the Los Angeles Public Library’s release on the grant, funding will go toward over 1,200 new computers and printers along with upgrades to internet servers in branches with wireless internet access.

The 2007-2010 Strategic Plan published for Los Angeles noted a $119 million budget for the previous year, 2006. Blum said not to be surprised if the amount has fluctuated since the plan was published. The 2007-2010 Strategic Plan can be viewed at http://www.lapl.org/about/Strategic_Plan.pdf.

In March 2011, voters can expect to see a new ballot measure coined the Library Charter Amendment to reopen Los Angeles Public Libraries on Mondays. If passed, the budget for the city will return to its previous budget level in 2009, as it will remove the current hold on funds from the original City General budget.

For more information on the Library Charter Amendment and the Westchester-Loyola Village and other Los Angeles branches visit http://www.lapl.org/.

-Chandrea Patterson

How to Make Autumn-Style Banana Cream Pudding

For 2-4 people – no baking necessary

As the seasons change and families prepare for their seasonal holiday festivities, here’s a recipe that will easily add to the fun. It’s a quick, 320 calorie dish filled with an autumn & winter theme to celebrate the changing of leaves in a matter of minutes. There’s no need to preheat the oven or bring out any pot and pans, as this treat requires no baking or heating. Enjoy!

Things You’ll Need

• ·         Medium or large mixing bowl

• ·         Whisk or electric mixer

• ·         Parfait glass for each serving

Ingredients

• ·         ½ to ¾ cup of whipped topping *topping should be set aside in advance to fully thaw

• ·         2 small bananas or 1 large banana

• ·          2 dozen multi-colored vanilla flavor wafers

• ·         2 cups of milk

• ·         1 pack of Instant Banana Cream Pudding

Directions

1.  Cut banana into small slices – should make about 15-30 pieces, depending on size.
2.  Set aside 12 vanilla wafers. Crush remaining wafers to form small crumbs – not too small or wafers will become fine & powdery.
3.  Pour 2 cups of milk into mixing bowl.
4.  Add package of Banana Cream pudding to milk. Whisk mixture for a few minutes until consistency is smooth (no clumps).
5. Add whipped topping to mixture. Stir gently for about a minute.

Serve

1.   Place three uncrushed wafers at bottom of parfait glass.
2.       Add sliced bananas on top of wafers.
3.       Add banana cream mixture on top of banana slices.
4.       Add crushed wafers on top of mixture.
5.       Repeat layers until glass is full.
*For softened wafers, let refrigerate for 15 minutes

Recipe courtesy – Alison Douglas

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

My weekend photo is very unique in that it is invisible. This is a perfect reflection of my weekends because I spend them trying not to be seen and usually not many people know where I am. I guess one could say that I am invisible on my weekends. The best thing about invisible weekends is that you are free to be yourself and not worry about weekday stressors. 

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The 18^th Street Arts Complex in Santa Monica, California held the Citizen Arts Making Emphatic Arguments exhibition July 12^th through September 13^th, 2008. The exhibition features artwork from “citizen artists” who focus on global and local environmental issues.

Curator Adolfa Nodal, who hosted the event, said “Artists are working with environmentalists, with scientists – with people about environmental issues and starting to really be able to change the science – actually communicate with people.”

Artists David Burns and Matias Viegener are showcasing their “Fallen Fruit” piece in hopes of bringing attention to a debate over publicly owned vegetation and plant life.

Burns, who started the project alongside Viegener, expressed his concerns regarding many areas in Los Angeles that grow fruit trees over publicly owned streets, sidewalks, and alleyways.

“We question who owns this fruit,” said Burns. “The homeowner whose house is in front of it? Or the city? Or the public at large?” 

The Fallen Fruit project takes a historical approach in examining how Americans relate to the food they consume. Various events are held in light of the project including invitational public mapping of fruit. The maps are created and distributed to show where such fruit can be found, and map authors are given credit for their contributions.

Viegener describes map findings as public fruit, and says that they hold complexity in their circumstances of ownership.

“Who owns the fruit is very unclear,” said Viegener. “Its sort of a gray zone and something we’d like to explore.”

“Fallen Fruit is about this exploration, on many levels, of ownership, property, the social rituals of food, a symbolic meaning of fruit as a cultural object and about the city,” said Viegener.

<br /><small>View Larger Map</small>

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Here are a few simple steps to help you prepare for college.

1) Register for your classes. (This is usually done online).

2) Buy or rent your textbooks for the upcoming semester.

3) Study; either in a group or solo.

4) Be on time to classes.

5) Have all your materials on-hand, especially for exams.

A) Haldiram's Punjabi Tadka is a unique crunchy-fried-spice-snack with a taste resembling that of a hot cheese fry. It first appears to be a harmless twig of salty fried goodness but soon gives a spicy kick garnished with mixed seasoning (not much different from traditional seasoning salt). Each little orange figure combines not-too-soft but not-too-crunchy texture with a burst of sweet, salty, honey-bbq-esque spice flavor. 

B) Not really sure what it is. Its fried something that tastes like it might be potato but might be leftover frying pan residue. Its good if you want something a lot of flavor but not too filling. Its a bit spicy and it gave me a runny nose. After you taste a small bit you soon want to take a whole handful, but be careful because the spiciness will sneak up on you.

When I moved to California around the same time I started kindergarten, my parents made an effort to enroll me in as many extra-curricular activities that time would permit. I remember doing dance classes, painting (I was 6 or 7 years-old), music composition, and YMCA basketball. I now realize the purpose of investing so much time into these activities at a young age. It helped to set a standard of ambition, and a goal oriented attitude toward not only school, but for life in general. One of the words I would choose to best describe myself is ambitious. Once I completed first grade, my teacher, who's name I can still remember, suggested that I began third grade rather than continuing to second. I remember the moment when she sat me down in our small, private school classroom and in her distinct Texas drawl asked me if I felt I was ready for what seemed such a big leap at the time. I nodded my head in confirmation of a change that would set the standard for achievement for the rest of my life.